Agricultural instabiltiy

Agricultural Instability: The Risk

Christina L. Maples
Tarleton State University

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Abstract

American agriculture has been teetering on the line of instability for far too long and now
threatens the life as we know it. Not only is this instability detrimental to Earths environment,
but it also threatens political and economic development, as well as the populations health. In
this paper we will discuss some of the leading problems of agricultural instability and the risk
involved.
Keywords: Agriculture, Risk and Uncertainty, Agricultural Management, Environmental
Management.

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Agricultural Instability: The Risk

In a world with a constantly growing population and limited resources, it is imperative

that agricultural stability is found. Otherwise, our descendants will be facing a dying world. If
the current agricultural instability is allowed to grow, Earth as we know it, will be altered in a
way that will make it unrecognizable. The air will be difficult to breath due to the excess carbon
dioxide that has not been filtered out, smog will fill the skys, green-house gases will continue to
grow and heat the atmosphere, food will be a scarce commodity, prices will rise to an outrageous
amount, and Earths population will be living on a dying planet.
To prevent this, stability must be found. In order to do this, one must understand the
causes of agricultural instability. These causes include: population growth, environment, and
current farming techniques.
Population Growth
During the time between 1959 and 1999, over the course of 40 years, the world
population doubled going from 3 billion to 6 billion. The world population is projected to grow
from 6 billion in 1999 to 9 billion by 2044, an increase of 50 percent that is expected to require
45 years. (U.S Census Bureau, 2013)

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U.S Census Bureau, international data base. (June 2011)

The graph above demonstrates how the populations has increased at an alarming rate.
This graph also shows how, if the population continues to grow at current rate, in just a few
decades, the world populations will be around nine billion people. With the understanding of the
increasing population, one must also realize that this planet has limited inhabitable space.
With the increase of population there is higher demand for space and food. People begin
to feel the need to spread out, rural areas become suburban, suburban communities become
urban. This population spread puts a strain on the land. Woodland will be cleared for housing
complexes, and farmers will be pressured to sell out when land is in building zone.

Agricultural instabiltiy

The increase in population increases the demand for agricultural goods, such as food and
clothing. However, the farming population is not growing at a rate that will keep up and sustain
the growing world population. Unable to keep up, family farms are disappearing and are being
pushed out by industrial farms. The farming agricultural community has felt the need to reform
into larger corporate farms that utilize genetically altered crops and hormone injected animals so
as to increase the production levels, just to keep the levels of production needed. The pesticides
used on crops can lead to health problems, Pesticides have been linked to a number of health
problems, including neurologic and endocrine (hormone) system disorders, birth defects, cancer,
and other diseases(Communication Foundation, 2014) This increase in population has pushed
the struggling farmers and ranchers to adopt techniques that are detrimental to health.
Farming Techniques
Farming has had to evolve from family run, regional production to corporate, mass production
farming. Gone are the days when farm fresh veggies can be found in the local market with the
farmer standing at the both. Now, small farmers are disappearing and replaced by industrial sized
farms and factory type animal production ranches. This change in techniques increase the
amount of pollution in the surrounding bodies of water, and air. In addition, as indicated in
previous section, the techniques have opened a whole new health problems in those consuming
products.
In example, if one were to look at dairy farms, the strain of demand is easily seen. In order for
dairy farmers to keep up with demands, and the limit of production needed just to break even,
they have had to increase land, stock, and (in some cases) inject cattle with hormones to produce
more milk. These hormones have been linked to early puberty in children and even cancer.

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One study compared diet and cancer rates in 42 counties. It showed that milk and cheese
consumption are strongly correlated to the incidence of testicular cancer among men ages 20 to
39. Rates were highest in places like Switzerland and Denmark, where cheese is a national food,
and lowest in Algeria and other countries where dairy is not so widely consumed (Ireland,
2006). More evidence can be seen when compared to cancer rates, In the past 50 years in Japan,
rising rates of dairy consumption are linked with rising death rates from prostate cancer from near zero per 100,000 five decades ago to 7 per 100,000 today.(Ireland, 2006)
Yet, even with all the evidence, it would be extremely difficult for dairy farmers to change their
technique. This method was developed to keep up with demand, if they were to change the
production level would fall and before long the farmer would go broke due to them not being
able to break even with the cost or production.
Environment. The damage to the environment due to population growth, farming
techniques, and other pollution factors have been extremely damaging. The need for paper
goods and wood have increased deforestation. More and more wood land have been cleared for
housing. This deforestation hinders the natural way that our air is filtered. Plant life takes carbon
dioxide and turns it into the life giving oxygen we require. In addition, plants cut down the
amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere (one of the leading gasses responsible for global
warming).
Climate change and agriculture is interrelated. Temperature and rain fall Tcan greatly
affect agricultural stability. Too much, or too little rain will affect crop production for the human
population, as well as domesticated animals. The rising and falling tempatures, due to

Agricultural instabiltiy

greenhouse gasses, have created an agricultural crisis.

Dot Earth, A Closer Look at Climate Panels Findings on Global Warming Impact(2013)

As the graph shows, the climate changes have reached a critical point. With weather
patterns disrupted temperatures rising, there is a need to control the factors created such events.
This type of devastation can be prevented by moderating deforestation. If we plant trees in place
of those being cut down, we could lessen the damage being caused.

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In conclusion, the damages cause as a result to human negligence and greed has plunged
us into agricultural instability. Steps need to be taken in order to correct past mistakes and create
a future free of the risks that accompany agricultural instability. With the knowledge of the
factors responsible, we are now able to determine ways that will combat the negative effects.

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References

Cady Roger, (2011). Investigating Americas Future, Journal of Dairy Science. Pages 52-55
U.S. Census Bureau,(2014) international data base. Page 1.
Ireland, Corydon. (2014)"Hormones in Milk Can Be Dangerous." Harvard News Office, Page 3.
Revkin, Andrew, (2013)."A Closer Look at Climate Panels Findings on Global Warming
Impacts" Dot Earth, Page 1.